Tomatoes can 'eat' insects (cross-post)

[lildreamer316]

(Thought some of you would find this interesting!)

Garden vegetables such as tomatoes and potatoes have been found to be deadly killers on a par with Venus fly traps, according to research.

By Richard Alleyne, Science Correspondent
Published: 2:42PM GMT 04 Dec 2009

Botanists have discovered for the first time that the plants are carnivorous predators who kill insects in order to "self-fertilise" themselves.

New research shows that they capture and kill small insects with sticky hairs on their stems and then absorb nutrients through their roots when the animals decay and fall to the ground.

It is thought that the technique was developed in the wild in order to supplement the nutrients in poor quality soil – but even domestic varieties grown in your vegetable patch retain the ability.

The killer plants have been identified as among a host of species that are thought to have been overlooked by botanists and explorers searching the world’s remotest regions for carnivorous species


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/wildlife/6727709/Tomatoes-can-eat-insects.html

[Kookaburra]

1. Fun Facts

I love this kind of thing. Never have used pesticides in my garden -- my dad and grandfather never did either -- we've always just planted tomatoes around the perimeter of the garden, and usually don't have any problems with bugs.

[gblady]

2. very interesting info....

makes perfect sense....

thanks for sharing!

[JanusAscending]

3. If I recall correctly....

they are both members of the "deadly" Nightshade family as well. In olden times some people were afraid to eat them for fear of being poisoned.

[Cleita]

4. Both tomatoes and potatoes are nightshades, of which many species are

poisonous. I once offered my neighbor's horse (who often was leaning over the fence when I was weeding looking for me to throw some edibles to him) the stems of my expired tomato plants and he backed away like he had seen a snake. He knew instinctively that it could be poisonous although I don't think it would have been.

[japple]

5. Too bad the tomatoes can't kill tomato hornworms. Those

things are horrible. Like something out of a horror movie.